As reported by The Guardian, documents obtained by Redfern Legal Centre reveal that an officer conducting a strip search is instructed to turn off their body-worn camera, while “the support officer is to record the search using a [body-worn video] camera.”
The documents reportedly state that officers should ensure the persons privacy by making sure the footage isn’t viewed by anyone “without a lawful reason to do so”, yet also state that “A person’s privacy is not a sufficient reason to cease filming a strip search conducted in the lawful execution of an officer’s duty.”
Police presence in NSW has ramped up in 2019, with an influx of drug dog operations and the use of strip-searching tents at Sydney’s Central train station increasing public concern about the role of police in the state.
Last month a 53 year old Sydney man was awarded over $110 000 in damages after it was ruled he was wrongfully submitted to an “invasive” strip search.
Read the full article here (Pedestrian, 2 August 2019)
